Song and Soul
by Miruial
Summary: While alone in the woods a girl encounters a strange and fair being that will never be seen again. NOT a Romance!


_**Disclaimer: The girl is mine. The rest is Tolkein's. And if you don't know that, then why are you even bothering to read the story? You will be hopelessly lost.**_

_**A/N: This is just a short one-shot meant to describe how someone who has never seen an elf would react to seeing one. I'm not really sure how this will go over, but it's kind of meant to convey my own impressions and ideas about elves. This story is set many years into the fourth age, when few people even know elves exist anymore.**_

00000000000000

I lay in the circle of bushes, staring at the sky. Hidden from the world in this small copse, I felt sheltered, safe. I was several miles out of the village, so I had no fear of being discovered before I was ready to return home. I needed space, time to think. One thought continually ran through my mind, a thought that excited and frightened me at the same time: Garad had proposed.

It was a good match, to be sure, but I was somewhat hesitant. Both my parents were urging me to accept the offer, as Garad's father owned his own shop and could thus provide for us very well. But I wasn't sure what I thought of the matter. I had known Garad, five years my senior, for years, but I had never truly thought of him in a romantic sense.

I sighed, running my hand through my sandy brown hair, the light from the setting sun giving it a reddish hue. Wait…. I sat up with a start. The sun was setting. I hadn't meant to stay out this late! It wasn't safe to be too far from the village when darkness fell…. Mother would give me a sound scolding when I got in. I began to stand when something made me pause.

It was a sound, but a sound unlike any I had ever heard before. I strained my ears, trying to discern what it, when I realized with a start that it was _singing_. But that voice… It was far too beautiful to be real, as if someone had given nature itself a voice. At first I thought the haunting melody had no words, but, as I listened, I realized that this was not so. The language was one I had never heard before, the words flowing and melting together, as light as a summer breeze, yet as rich and full as the ocean.

As it drew nearer, the song grew louder, filling my being with its beauty. It was so powerful that it brought tears to my eyes, though whether they were tears of sadness, happiness, love, hate, anger, jealousy, longing, or some other indefinable quality, I could not explain. The music touched my very soul. I was willing to believe that Eru had indeed allowed the trees and sky to sing for me, when _he_ came into view.

He was… _more_ than beautiful, unearthly, with the last rays of daylight glinting off his golden tresses. Beautiful is not often a term I would use to describe a man, though he could not be a man. There was something indescribable about him, something that was mystical and beautiful. He could not be something so lowly as a simple man. This is not to say that he appeared at all feminine, in fact, nothing could be farther from the truth. His strong, proud features, his easy gait, his very being proclaimed his masculinity. Yet, he seemed too far removed from, too high above mortal man to call him 'handsome' or 'cute.' Perhaps it was Eru himself, come down to Middle Earth. And right now, he was singing, his fair face tilted upwards towards the western horizon, a look of longing, sadness, and joy upon his delicate features.

Already enchanted by this vision, I was unprepared for the wonder of what would happen next. The cause was simple. The sun finally disappeared. But with the coming of darkness, I was plunged into what could be a scene from a story. The creature was suddenly stood out against his surroundings, for I could still see him clearly, as if he were filled with his own light, yet that light did not spill out onto his surroundings. His hair turned almost silvery in this new lighting, and indeed, he seemed to be some fey creature, woven out of the very starlight and moonlight. He belonged in the darkness, just as the stars did, giving light and beauty where there was none before. It was… _magical_, an embodiment of the world around me that both contrasted with and complemented the wild beauty of nature. I could not hold back a small gasp of delight and awe at what I was seeing.

Instantly, the song stopped. The wondrous being abruptly went so still that I was not certain he even breathed. His posture spoke of alertness, balanced perfectly on the balls of his feet, ready to spring in any direction. I knew he was listening, his delicate, leaf-shaped ears straining for any whisper that he was not alone. Now, though he was still exceedingly fair, he had transformed into a hard warrior, fey and dangerous. His lithe body was sleek with muscle, and his hand was poised near a knife in his belt that I was certain he could use.

I shrank back into the bushes, suddenly afraid, though, of course, he could not see me. I do not know how he knew I was there, for I had made no sound, but I had no sooner moved than he whirled to face me, the knife in his hand faster than my eye could follow. Piercing silver eyes met mine, trapping me in his gaze. As I stared into those silver pools of moonlight, my surrounding seemed to melt away until I was only aware of the incredible being before me. Though his face was youthful, his eyes…. They held an ancient wisdom from beyond this world. They showed the laughter of a bubbling brook and the sorrow of a weeping willow; the wisdom of the stars and the playfulness of a squirrel; the calm of a lake and the threat of a storm.

Now, those eyes seemed to look through me, laying bare everything I held in my heart, mind, and soul. It could have been an eternity or a second in which I stared at him, motionlessly, unaware of the outside world. It was… overwhelming. It grew harder and harder to meet that gaze, so ancient and yet so young, yet I was afraid to look away. Though I was terrified, I did not want the moment to end. Something about him made me feel that I had encountered something that mortal men were never meant to see. Then, just as I could bear it no longer, he released me from the power of his eyes, his gaze softening. Almost imperceptibly he nodded, and then he was gone.

I still do not know how he moved so quickly, melting into his surroundings as if he were a part of them. I leapt to my feet, glancing around wildly to see where he had gone, but all I caught was a glimpse of golden hair, now far away, and a strain of song, drifting back to me on a gentle breeze. And then that, too, was gone, and I was alone once more.

An overwhelming sadness took me. I knew that I would never see that wondrous being again, nor would any in Middle Earth. All mankind had lost something precious, and most would never even know it. I could still feel his eyes looking into my soul, and the song still tugged at my heart. The sorrow, joy, and longing made me want to laugh, cry, race after him and travel to whatever mystical faerieland he was heading to. But I could not move, staring spellbound at the place where he had disappeared.

I know not how long I stood there before I roused myself and wandered home in a daze. I only dimly remember my mother's scolding and crying before I dragged myself into bed, though I did not sleep. The song pulled at me, swelling up and crashing around me like the waves in the sea. A longing filled my heart, though I knew not what I longed for. I must have lain there all night, for the next thing I was aware of was the first rays of morning peering over the horizon. Peace stole over me, the tumult of the night disappearing, and I knew that he was gone from this earth, never to return.

00000000000000

_**Well, there you have it, folks! The story of the last elf to leave Middle Earth and the girl who saw him. She never forgot her encounter with the 'faerie-creature', though she told no one of it, not even Garad, whom she married. The secret remained locked in her heart until she died, for she knew that the time of these fading beings was over, and humankind would have to move on into their own era.**_


End file.
